Current status: Answered by Neil Gray on 12 February 2025
To ask the Scottish Government, regarding its draft Budget 2025-26, how much funding it plans to allocate to NHS capital projects, once the replacements for the Edinburgh Eye Pavilion, Monklands Hospital and Belford Hospital in Fort William are accounted for.
The 2025-26 draft budget provides increased investment of £139 million across the NHS estate. This allows plans for Monklands and Belford hospital replacements and a new eye pavilion to be progressed, supports a new radiopharmacy facility and provides increased core capital allocations to NHS Boards, as well as additional support for Boards’ priority maintenance and improvements.
The budget also provides continued support for NHS projects already in construction and for the national replacement programmes for ambulances and radiotherapy equipment.
Beyond this, further NHS projects cannot be supported at this time, as there remains challenge and uncertainty in the capital budget position. All due consideration will be given as to which projects are affordable and deliverable, following the outcome of the UK Government’s spending review.
This will be supported by our work with Health Boards to develop a whole-system NHS infrastructure plan which will consider health infrastructure needs for the whole of Scotland, supporting the continued safe operation of existing facilities, as well as determination of longer-term investment priorities.